AllCutieWants
07-02-2004, 09:26 AM
Gavin Reynolds (Niagara Falls, NY) 07/02/04 - Mall developer Tom Wilmot has released plans for a $500 million complex including a casino, an office building and hotel where the Sibley Building is now.
Wilmot says a casino could revitalize downtown. But that’s not exactly what happened in Niagara Falls.
The Seneca Niagara Casino opened just over a year ago and despite promises of major development, little has changed.
Business owner Joe D'Angelo said, “The whole area is depressed and people are afraid to put money in that area."
NewsSource 13 visited Niagara Falls four years ago before the casino was built. The tourist area hasn't changed much. A gaping hole in the earth was there back then and it's still there today-- with the promise a massive aquarium.
Then, the Rainbow Mall had a few businesses. Today it's shut down.
D'Angelo said tourists spend their money only at the casino.
He said, "In my business, we get some business, but restaurants are hurting because they [the casino] got their own restaurants."
One promise the Casino kept is providing jobs. After a hotel is built about 5,000 people will work there.
Still, Niagara Falls mayor Vince Anello said the city would be better off with a privately-run casino.
Indian casinos are exempt from local taxes, which could total millions of dollars a year.
Anello said, “We have a casino, but it would have been a greater benefit if the state and politics wouldn't have kept us from having our own."
Anello advised not to put all bets on a casino--it could take years before downtown booms.
He also said property values around the casino have started to turn around, and are slowly rising.
A deal between Governor Pataki and The Seneca Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma is in negotiation and could come any day. If they settle a land claim, it could mean a casino in downtown Rochester.
:!: I think (fos) a casino in Rochester would be cool.
Wilmot says a casino could revitalize downtown. But that’s not exactly what happened in Niagara Falls.
The Seneca Niagara Casino opened just over a year ago and despite promises of major development, little has changed.
Business owner Joe D'Angelo said, “The whole area is depressed and people are afraid to put money in that area."
NewsSource 13 visited Niagara Falls four years ago before the casino was built. The tourist area hasn't changed much. A gaping hole in the earth was there back then and it's still there today-- with the promise a massive aquarium.
Then, the Rainbow Mall had a few businesses. Today it's shut down.
D'Angelo said tourists spend their money only at the casino.
He said, "In my business, we get some business, but restaurants are hurting because they [the casino] got their own restaurants."
One promise the Casino kept is providing jobs. After a hotel is built about 5,000 people will work there.
Still, Niagara Falls mayor Vince Anello said the city would be better off with a privately-run casino.
Indian casinos are exempt from local taxes, which could total millions of dollars a year.
Anello said, “We have a casino, but it would have been a greater benefit if the state and politics wouldn't have kept us from having our own."
Anello advised not to put all bets on a casino--it could take years before downtown booms.
He also said property values around the casino have started to turn around, and are slowly rising.
A deal between Governor Pataki and The Seneca Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma is in negotiation and could come any day. If they settle a land claim, it could mean a casino in downtown Rochester.
:!: I think (fos) a casino in Rochester would be cool.